Essay on Leukemia And Stem Cells

Essay on Leukemia And Stem Cells

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Today, the topic of stem cells is a highly discussed, controversial one. It seems as though there is always something being said about new findings in stem cell research and what will be done with the newly-found information. One of the most conversed aspects of stem cell research is how stem cells can be used to treat potentially life-threatening conditions. Leukemia is one of the conditions being researched along with how stem cell therapy could help benefit the patients with it. In order to fully understand what is going on in the world of stem cell and leukemia research, one must first know what stem cells are and what leukemia is.
Leukemia is a cancer of the white blood cells, and leukemia cells form in the bone marrow like other normal blood cells. The exact causes of leukemia are unknown, but there are some known risk factors that may lead to leukemia. These include being exposed to radiation, smoking, undergoing chemotherapy, having a genetic disorder, having a number of blood disorders, and a family history of leukemia. There are two different categories of leukemia: chronic and acute. Chronic leukemia gets worse slowly, whereas acute leukemia gets worse quickly. Depending on the type of leukemia, the symptoms may not even be apparent. In chronic leukemia, it is not uncommon for patients to be totally unaware of their disease until a routine check-up. However, symptoms may be experienced right away in patients with acute leukemia. Some symptoms of leukemia include fever, night sweats, headaches, change of appetite, unexpected weight loss, bruising easily, bleeding easily, fatigue, swollen lymph nodes, recurrent infections, and pain in the bones or joints. Conversely, these symptoms may not even be due to leukemia at all....

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...e going on today for leukemia, there is still no 100% guarantee for patients with the cancer. There is some controversy with conducting the research, especially with stem cells from the embryos and blastocysts. Some think that this is murder and shouldn’t be funded. Others think everything is all for the greater good. Now that you know the facts, where do you stand?

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- Can you imagine if one of your friends, family or even yourself waking up or seeing people feeling really weak, when they can’t do anything because of low immune system, seeing their hair falls out day by day. Leukemia is a type of cancer of the blood or bone marrow (News,M.). It is where our blood is forming tissue. White blood cells fights for infection in our body, it gives us protection from any bacteria that comes in to our body. People who have leukemia suffer from an abnormal production of white blood cells or known as leukocytes (News,M.).... [tags: stem cell transplant, cancer in blood cells]

- Leukemia is a form of cancer that starts in the stem cells of the bone marrow that make blood cells. A bone marrow is the material that fills the center of most bones which is where blood cells are made. Leukemia is basically a blood cancer where the cells do not form properly. Leukemia is found in blood cells and since blood cells do not have chromosomes or DNA then they cannot divide or reproduce like somatic cells do. Blood cells form in the bone marrow and when too many blood cells form in the human body then Leukemia cancer is developed.... [tags: Leukemia Cancer Essays]

- ... They are less mature than adult stem cells but more mature than embryonic stem cells (Freedman 10). There is a lot of research being done about stem cells today. Scientists try to figure out what tissues can be made from stem cells and how to reproduce the cells best. A lot of this research is done in vitro (out of the body) in labs. Learning how stem cells change into different cells can give us the ability to stimulate stem cells in labs to form tissue. It could lead us to being able to change stem cells in the body to specific cells (Freedman 12).... [tags: disorder, cells, change, osteoblast]

- Stem cells offer great promise for success in future medical treatments. However, there still remains to be biased opinions on whether or not the use of stem cell for research is the most appropriate and effective tool for medical research. This topic is especially important for people who are suffering from disease that is capable of being treated through stem cell use. For these people, the treatment has the potential to change their outlook on life to a positive one. The advancements are diverse and have the potential to help cure numerous diseases and illnesses.... [tags: stem cell research, AMA, cloning, USPTO]

- A stem cell being able to make cartilage and bone seems like a preposterous idea, does it not. With the invention of the microscope in the 1800’s, it was not long before scientists were able to discern that some cells were able to generate and change into other cells. This was the beginning of stem cell research. In 1961, Dr.’s Till and McCullough were studying the effects of radiation on the bone marrow of mice, when they discovered the existence of multipotent stem cells. In 1998, James Thomson at the University of Wisconsin-Madison isolated human embryonic stem cells, then demonstrated how they specialize and rejuvenate.... [tags: human embryo, stem cells]

- Dr. Dan Kaufman, Ph. D. an associate professor University of Minnesota Stem Cell Institute, has said that, “human embryonic stem-cell research is not only ethical, it is an essential field to pursue to make key advances in biomedical research to treat diseases effectively where there are currently no cures… (thesurvivaldoctor.com).” I believe that stem cell research needs to receive government funding and research should expand in order to completely understand what diseases can be cured through stem cells, and if the benefits outweigh the risks involved.... [tags: Embryonic Stem-Cell Research, Human Cells]

- Stem cells have several potential applications. Stem cells can be used to study development by helping us to understand how a complex organism develops from a fertilized egg. Some of the serious medical conditions such as cancer and birth defects which are lead by abnormal cell division and differentiation will have new therapy dealing with stem cell research. Stem cells have the ability to replace damaged cells and treat disease of extensive burns, leukemia (a cancer of blood forming tissues) and other blood disorders.... [tags: Stem cell, Embryonic stem cell]

- Introduction Stem cells are a certain type of cells that are classified by their ability to differentiate into different tissues. They are also self- renewing cells. There are three different types of stem cells that have been discovered (Iwamori, Iwamori, & Matzuk M., 2012). The types are embryonic, adult, and induced pluripotent stem cells. Research is currently being done to analyze the potential medical benefits of stem cells. There are also many different ethical questions surrounding stem cells (Shahid & Irshad, 2012).... [tags: tissue, ethics, embryonic, adult, pluripotent]

- Leukemia Leukemia is a group of blood diseases characterized by cancer of the blood forming tissues. It was discovered in Europe during the XIX century when a group of doctors directed by John Hughes Bennett tested their patients and discovered their elevated number of white blood cells.... [tags: Papers]